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Compliments, comments and complaints
Compliments, comments and complaints
Compliments, comments, and complaints help us to improve the service we provide to our residents and businesses.
You can:
- pay a compliment
- make a comment
- make a complaint
about the service you have received via our online form. This is the quickest and easiest way to register a compliment, comment or complaint with us.
Pay a compliment, make a complaint or provide a comment
If you wish to make a complaint, you will need to sign up for a self-account. Any other complaints made will be treated anonymously - and we will not be able to provide you with a response.
Is it a complaint or a service request?
A complaint is where a customer expresses their dissatisfaction - however made - about the standard of service, actions or lack of actions by:
- the organisation (Babergh Mid Suffolk District Councils)
- its own staff
- or those acting on its (the organisation's) behalf
The customer affected may be an individual resident, or a group of residents.
A service request is contact from a customer that brings a matter to the organisation's attention for the first time. It will regard a service offered by the organisation (for example, a missed bin collection).
If you think you need to make a service request, please contact us via one of the two relevant links below:
If there is something you would like to report to us:
Visit our Report webpage (and select the option that's relevant to you)
If you would like to make contact with a specific team at the Councils, please do so via the following online form. You can select the team you need to speak with - any information you provide within the form will then be forwarded to them directly.
Pay a compliment
If you were happy with the service you received from a team or individual within the Councils, we would love to hear about your positive experience.
All compliments that we receive will be submitted to a panel for an annual customer service award to recognise the following:
- Outstanding contribution to customer services from an individual
- Outstanding contribution to customer services from a team
The panel includes our Corporate Manager for Customer Operations, volunteer officers from across the Councils and volunteer residents.
If you would like to be part of this process in the future, please complete our online Customer Panel Request form. We will be in touch within five working days.
Make a comment
If you do not wish to make a complaint - but simply have an idea of how we could improve or develop the services we provide - we would be grateful to hear your opinion.
If you would like us to respond to your comment, please provide your contact details alongside any comments made. We will get back to you within 10 working days.
Pay a compliment, make a complaint or provide a comment
Continuous Improvement
Compliments, comments, and complaints are important in helping us to make improvements to our services. We are committed to learning lessons from all feedback we receive from customers.
Some of the ways we use your feedback include:
- We report on improvements made to our services every 12 months
- We publish annual Local Government Ombudsman reports
Policies
In April 2022, the Councils agreed a new Compliments, comments and complaints policy. This policy sets out how we will deal with your complaint.
Read our Compliments, comments and complaints policy (updated August 2023)
Visit our How will we deal with your complaint? webpage for more information.
Unreasonably persistent complainants
The Councils have also recently agreed a new policy regarding persistent complainants. This policy sets out the process for designating an unreasonably persistent complainant and the processes of appeal.